ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith said that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has “lost his damn mind” after the NAACP issued a travel advisory to Florida in response to policies that have been criticized as discriminatory and anti-Black.
During a segment on his podcast “Know Mercy with Stephen A. Smith,” the star of ESPN’s sports debate show “First Take” addressed the issue, saying that while he wasn’t an “aficionado on this subject” he has the right to call out someone who “looks like a damn fool.”
“And in the case of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, at this pace, he might go down as one of the stupidest people I’ve ever seen. And we know he’s not stupid. We know how smart he is,” Smith said in his podcast episode released Tuesday.
Smith also read NAACP’s full advisory on Florida, highlighting the governor’s recent move to prohibit public colleges and universities in the state from funding diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
The 55-year-old sports personality has expressed his opinion on political issues before. His comments come after the network’s president, Jimmy Pitaro, said in a 2019 interview that its viewers do not want to see anchors and personalities cover politics, following the aftermath of former network personality Jemele Hill referring to then-President Trump as a “white supremacist” in September 2017.
“If you’re DeSantis, it’s bad enough you’ve alienated the Latino community, it’s bad enough, you’ve alienated tens of millions of women because I assure you, even though you have an abundance of women against abortion, most would like the right to make the choice for themselves as opposed to having male politicians dictate those choices for them. Now we get to this latest stuff and this is where it hits home for me cause I’m a Black man and we’re talking about the NAACP,” Smith added.
“Respectfully to the governor, Ron DeSantis, who obviously has offended Latinos, Blacks, women — have you lost your mind or do you just want to throw away the election? Is that what you’re trying to do?” Smith asked.
The NAACP issued a formal travel advisory for Florida on Saturday, saying the state has become “hostile to Black Americans” under DeSantis’s leadership.
The move comes as DeSantis is prepared to launch his 2024 presidential campaign. DeSantis, considered to be a top rival to former President Trump, is expected to announce his campaign in a “special Twitter Spaces” discussion with Twitter CEO Elon Musk Wednesday night.
The Hill has reached out to DeSantis for comment.